Cantor Fitzgerald, the bond trading firm which lost 700 staff in the World Trade Centre, has come under attack for removing the names of missing employees from its payroll just four days after the disaster.

Some families were upset when pay cheques, due last week, failed to arrive. They pointed out that the employees remain officially missing, rather than deceased.

Cantor Fitzgerald was affected more than any other company in the disaster. It lost 70% of its staff in New York.

The firm has pledged to donate a quarter of its profits to the families of missing employees. But some point out that other companies have said they will continue paying staff until relatives find an alternative "safety net".

A Cantor Fitzgerald spokesman yesterday confirmed that missing employees were removed from the firm's payroll on September 15. The firm has described it as "the most difficult by far" of the business decisions it has taken since the disaster.

There is also concern about the likely end of health insurance for families, and about bonuses.

Cantor ended uncertainty by saying it will pay performance bonuses at the end of the year to the families of victims, waiving a rule that employees must work to the end of the period. But with many records missing, families have asked how these sums, which are often much higher than traders' salaries, will be calculated.

The missing Cantor Fitzgerald employees include dozens of British nationals. Cantor Fitzgerald's chairman Howard Lutnick has been otherwise praised for his handling of the tragedy. He recently urged clients to rally round, saying: "If every money manager of a pension fund just gave us a little bit of business, then maybe we'll survive."